Dark Side of the Moon: 20th Ann Ltd Ed [Import]

 

 

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I own several versions of this (on LP & CD) but I believe this is my favorite. The packaging is unique, with a deluxe booklet containing lyrics, photos, and artwork; 5 very cool cards; and, a nice black box that houses it all. As far as the sound is concerned, there's always been different opinions among floydians regarding the various editions, but I would rank this at least the equal to any of the other versions. The 20th Anniversary Edition was lovingly remastered by engineer Doug Sax. Not many people are aware that the original release was several generations removed from the master tapes, according to David Gilmour, so this is a big improvement. One caution: if you buy this CD used, make sure the outer box is not beat up, if such things matter to you, as it tends to show wear very easily.

Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon was released in March of 1973. The album became the group's first number one album in America and has stayed on the charts for nearly an accumulated 1,300 plus weeks(741 weeks from 1973-88 and many more now from 1991-today where it still remains). Plus, The Dark Side of the Moon is the third largest selling album worldwide with some 34 million copies sold(including 15 million here in the US). There is a good reason why this album has held up for 31 years, it's because the songs deal with problems that one goes through in life and the production was way ahead of its time. This was the first album that ever touched me in the heart, I used to go to sleep listening to Dark Side when I was a baby because lullabies wouldn't work half the time so when all else failed, my mother would put Dark Side on the turntable and it did the trick. Consequently, I became a die-hard Floyd fanatic, which I still am today. In March of 1993, Capitol/EMI reissued the album as a limited edition box with a big book and postcards and used the remaster that James Guthrie and Doug Sax did for the Shine On box set in 1992. Also, original engineer Alan Parson gave the OK to connect the end of Great Gig to the beginning of Money as CDs do not split into sides. For years, until the 2003 SACD issue came out, this was the best version of Dark Side. DSotM started out life as a piece called Eclipse and eventually became DSotM. Guitarist/vocalist David Gilmour's vocals and guitar solos dominate throughout the album as does keyboardist Rick Wright's keyboard work and harmony vocals. This album has survived the test of time like no other album ever made before or since. As everyone knows, the album was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London between June of 1972 and January of 1973 with the band producing and Alan Parsons(whom would go on to be a succesful producer in his own right) engineering the album with Chris Thomas (whom had worked with The Beatles and became a producer in his own right) handling the mixing. All of the songs dealt with different topics that one experiences in life like Time (with clock noises and about racing against or managing time) and Us and Them (a song about the perils of war and is still relevant today. Note: the music of this song was originally intended for the 1970 film Zabriske Point during the riot scenes and was called The Violent Sequence but director Antonioni rejected it in favor of another Careful With That Axe Eugene entitled Come In Number 51 but was luckily resurrected for DSotM's best track). Instrumentals like Speak to Me(featuring voices that are dominant throughout the album and with a heartbeat that was done on drummer Nick Mason's bass drum which opens and closes the disc), On the Run (which was originally a guitar jam entitled The Travel Sequence changed into this eight note Synthi-A VCS3 synthesizer pattern complete with tape effects and guitar noises), The Great Gig in the Sky(was originally called The Religious Sequence before it changed into this instrumental about death and dying and featured the excellent vocal phrasings of Clare Torry) and Any Colour You Like(which was originally called Scat during the preliminary stages of the album) are excellent as well. The other tracks on DSotM are classics. Breathe(was originally written during the recording of Roger Waters' first solo project The Body with different lyrics and music save the Breathe in the Air refrain), Money(which eventually became Pink Floyd's first American Top 20 hit and one of the few singles released with a 7/4 time signature and was about the pleasures and negatives that money brought) and the closing one-two punch of Brain Damage(a song referencing to original Floyd leader Syd Barrett and absent friends) and Eclipse(which sums up the album) wrap up this classic of an album. This album is a must in anyone's record collection.

Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon was released in March of 1973. The album became the group's first number one album in America and has stayed on the charts for nearly an accumulated 1,300 plus weeks(741 weeks from 1973-88 and many more now from 1991-today where it still remains). Plus, The Dark Side of the Moon is the third largest selling album worldwide with some 34 million copies sold(including 15 million here in the US). There is a good reason why this album has held up for 31 years, it's because the songs deal with problems that one goes through in life and the production was way ahead of its time. This was the first album that ever touched me in the heart, I used to go to sleep listening to Dark Side when I was a baby because lullabies wouldn't work half the time so when all else failed, my mother would put Dark Side on the turntable and it did the trick. Consequently, I became a die-hard Floyd fanatic, which I still am today. In March of 1993, Capitol/EMI reissued the album as a limited edition box with a big book and postcards and used the remaster that James Guthrie and Doug Sax did for the Shine On box set in 1992. Also, original engineer Alan Parson gave the OK to connect the end of Great Gig to the beginning of Money as CDs do not split into sides. For years, until the 2003 SACD issue came out, this was the best version of Dark Side. DSotM started out life as a piece called Eclipse and eventually became DSotM. Guitarist/vocalist David Gilmour's vocals and guitar solos dominate throughout the album as does keyboardist Rick Wright's keyboard work and harmony vocals. This album has survived the test of time like no other album ever made before or since. As everyone knows, the album was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London between June of 1972 and January of 1973 with the band producing and Alan Parsons(whom would go on to be a succesful producer in his own right) engineering the album with Chris Thomas (whom had worked with The Beatles and became a producer in his own right) handling the mixing. All of the songs dealt with different topics that one experiences in life like Time (with clock noises and about racing against or managing time) and Us and Them (a song about the perils of war and is still relevant today. Note: the music of this song was originally intended for the 1970 film Zabriske Point during the riot scenes and was called The Violent Sequence but director Antonioni rejected it in favor of another Careful With That Axe Eugene entitled Come In Number 51 but was luckily resurrected for DSotM's best track). Instrumentals like Speak to Me(featuring voices that are dominant throughout the album and with a heartbeat that was done on drummer Nick Mason's bass drum which opens and closes the disc), On the Run (which was originally a guitar jam entitled The Travel Sequence changed into this eight note Synthi-A VCS3 synthesizer pattern complete with tape effects and guitar noises), The Great Gig in the Sky(was originally called The Religious Sequence before it changed into this instrumental about death and dying and featured the excellent vocal phrasings of Clare Torry) and Any Colour You Like(which was originally called Scat during the preliminary stages of the album) are excellent as well. The other tracks on DSotM are classics. Breathe(was originally written during the recording of Roger Waters' first solo project The Body with different lyrics and music save the Breathe in the Air refrain), Money(which eventually became Pink Floyd's first American Top 20 hit and one of the few singles released with a 7/4 time signature and was about the pleasures and negatives that money brought) and the closing one-two punch of Brain Damage(a song referencing to original Floyd leader Syd Barrett and absent friends) and Eclipse(which sums up the album) wrap up this classic of an album. This album is a must in anyone's record collection.

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